Prevention Happened Here!

ACT Missouri’s staff is still reeling with excitement from the prevention momentum that started at this year’s Missouri Substance Use Prevention Conference at the beautiful Lodge of Four Seasons in Lake Ozark, MO. The conference scored a perfect 10 on:

Number of years it has been in existence
Record breaking attendance of 327 and 26 exhibitors
Surprising and honoring award winners
Gaining useful knowledge and skills to apply in communities
Refreshing instructors on Mental Health First Aid
Opportunities to network with others in the field

The Pre-Conference kicked off on the morning of November 18^th with the Mental Health First Aid Instructor Summit for certified facilitators. Five experts from Missouri Institute of Mental Health lead the course and discussion with 51 MHFA facilitators. At 1:00, Dr. Rodney Wambeam, from the University of Wyoming, took the stage to teach coalition members on “Enhancing Environmental Prevention Efforts in Communities”. This interactive workshop allowed participants to formulate a plan to address population-level changes in substance use patterns.

That evening, participants enjoyed a delicious Italian Feast, “The Hill” at the networking dinner. One of ACT Missouri’s longstanding Board of Director’s, Darrell Moore, unveiled ACT Missouri’s new logo, encouraged coalitions to involve their county’s Prosecuting Attorneys in their prevention efforts, and enjoyed some well-earned bragging rights about his coalition’s 30^th anniversary or preventing underage drinking in Greene County.

The conference offered 18 workshops for participants to choose from and two plenary presentations. The topics included marijuana, kratom, vaping, resiliency, coalition building techniques, and general prevention. On Wednesday morning, Dr. Ram Chettiar, a Child Psychiatrist from Mercy Children’s Hospital in Kansas City, presented “FOMO, Insta-Famous, and Trolls: Navigating Mental Health in the Age of Social Media”. It provided the latest statistics and resources regarding the connection of youth mental health and electronic devices. Ellen Nodine, from Florida’s Center for Public Interest Communications, shared some real-life examples and techniques about the science of making people care. The preliminary round of evaluations revealed very complimentary scores to both the presenters and content shared.

The highlight of the conference was the Awards Presentation over lunch on Wednesday, November 20^th. ACT Missouri’s Alicia Ozenberger and Amanda Baker from the Division of Behavioral Health honored the following champs and coalitions with a plaque and a signed Senate Resolution:

Champions of Change for Prevention: Linda Shores for her 15+ years of service to Communities Taking Action, and Julia Mees from Excelsior Springs SAFE. Julia’s Prevention Specialist, Laura Bruce, secretly arranged for her husband, daughters, and parents to attend the luncheon and surprise her.

Champions of Change for Prevention

Linda Shores

Communities Taking Action

Julia Mees

Excelsior Springs SAFE

Coalition of the Year

Caldwell County Cares

The Coalition of the Year was Caldwell County Cares for their efforts in reducing youth alcohol, e-cigarette and marijuana use below the state average.

Milestone in Prevention

Newton County Community Coalition

This year’s Milestone in Prevention Award went to the Newton County Community Coalition for its underage drinking prevention efforts and advocacy.

Attendees were able to earn up to 14 contact hours from the Missouri Credentialing Board, and for the second year, ACT Missouri also offered hours from the NCHEC, the National Health Education Credentialing Board. As of December 2, our conference attendees have clocked over 1100 hours!

ACT Missouri would like to thank the individuals that shared their “Prevention Stories” at the conference. These video clips will be posted on our website’s dedicated page, and everyone is encouraged to submit their personal story here and on their social media sites using #MOPrevention and #MOPreventionStories.

Prevention Happens Here is also the theme for SAMHSA’s 2020 National Prevention Week. It is our hope that Missouri’s community coalitions will continue to sustain and benefit from the impressive momentum that was established at the conference throughout the coming year.

Prevention Wins Were Lean in 2019

On Friday May 17^th, the 2019 legislative session ended with its historical tossing of the papers in the House Chambers. ACT Missouri tracked 73 bills which included some oldies but goodies, as well as some new bills on the behavioral health horizon.

The following bills were “Truly Agreed and Finally Passed”:

SB 275 modifies provisions relating to healthcare, and it includes information on dentists prescribing opioids, developing a Joint Committee on Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment, and numerous other components. It appears that at least three other bills were included in the final language.
HB 547, which requires each judicial circuit to establish a Veteran’s Treatment Court, passed with several House and Senate Committee substitutes.

For 7 years, Representative Holly Rehder, Sikeston, has filed a PDMP bill. Although the Narcotics Control Act, HB 188, went all the way through the process and was placed on the informal Senate Calendar on April 23, it was not brought up for a final vote in the Senate. She shared some comments about its disappointing outcome, and this article provides a good summation of the obstacles in getting this legislation passed.

Rehder also sponsored HB 168 on safe syringe exchanges, and it passed the House Chamber 124 to 27, was referred to the Senate Health and Pensions Committee, but no hearings were held.

Representative Pike once again championed a bill that would add powdered alcohol to the current definition. On April 11, it passed through the House with a vote of 142 to 4 and was referred to the Senate General Laws Committee where it stalled.

Another alcohol related bill that enjoyed some traction was HB 250, sponsored by Nick Schroer. It would allow wholesalers to employee 18 year olds as supervised liquor delivery persons. It passed 148 to 3 in March by the House and had a hearing with the Senate General Laws Committee on May 7.

A couple of bills were filed limiting opioids prescribed by dentists. Coleman’s HB 628 was amended, passed the house, and was then second read and referred in the Senate.

Senator Sater filed SB 6, and it modifies provisions relating to controlled substances including the Schedules, medical marijuana, and criminal provisions. It passed through the Senate, was heard in the House, placed on the calendar, but not called up for a vote.

17 different marijuana bills were filed this session, but only two had any momentum. Representative Hicks’ HB 341, allowing certain marijuana offenses to be expunged if occurring prior to issuance of a patient card passed the House 94-55 in March and was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee, and HB 829, sponsored by Wood, passed the house and was voted Do Pass out of Senate Health and Pensions.

On the behavioral health side, Senator Schupp’s 164, which modifies provisions relating to professional licensing hours of suicide, made it through the Senate and was placed on the House Calendar on the final day of session.

A bill designating May as Mental Health Awareness Month and July as Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, sponsored by Rep. Sommer, passed the House 149 to 2, and was later voted Do Pass out of the Senate Health Pensions Committee. McGirl’s HB 345, designating August 31 as “Random Acts of Kindness Day in Missouri” made it through the House 136 to 3, and was second read and referred to the Senate General Laws Committee.

ACT Missouri would like to thank everyone for their advocacy efforts this session. Please keep in mind that the best time to build rapport with your legislators is while they are in their home districts. Invite them to your coalition meetings and functions, add their emails to your list serve, follow and like them on their social media channels, attend functions where they will be speaking, and keep them in the loop about behavioral health topics in your community. They heavily rely on constituents for information and stories.

Communities Taking Action to Prevent RX Drug Misuse

On April 27, Law Enforcement and communities worked together to collect unwanted and expired medications to divert them from possible misuse. The theme for this bi-annual DEA event was “Don’t be the Dealer” to raise awareness that unmonitored medications are easy targets for those with an opioid use disorder.

Missouri collected 38,233 pounds, bringing the total collected since the inception of Take Backs in 2010 to 494,620 pounds of medications.

Missouri once again lead the region in pounds removed from circulation.

Coalition Take Back Days

Community Partnership of the Ozarks, which services the entire southwest corner of the state, hosted multiple Take Back sites across the region.

Healthy Dent County Prevention Coalition
hosted a
Take Back Day

Lee’s Summit Cares – Take Back Day

The Lee’s Summit community disposed of 714 pounds of medications at four locations: the Lee’s Summit Police Department, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, John Knox Village, and Lee’s Summit Medical Center. The local event is sponsored by Lee’s Summit CARES, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Lee’s Summit Police Department, and Lee’s Summit Water Department. Since 2010, Lee’s Summit residents have properly disposed of more than 18,375 pounds of medication through Lee’s Summit Take-Back Days and local year-round permanent medication boxes.

Southeast Missouri Behavioral Health – Take Back Day

Southeast Missouri Behavioral Health’s prevention team purchased lunch for the participants and provided banners for each of the six counties they service.

Carter County Sheriff’s Department also used the occasion to promote the Be Under Your Own Influence Campaign!

Poplar Bluff Police Department – Take Back Day

The Poplar Bluff Police Department collected medications at the station despite the windy conditions that battered their banner!

Southeast Prevention Resource Center- Take Back Day

The Southeast Prevention Resource Center’s service areas hosted events at the Jackson, Cape Girardeau, Perryville, and Fredericktown Police Departments. The Ste. Genevieve Health Department also hosted a Take Back.

St. Joseph Youth Alliance- Take Back Day

St. Joseph Youth Alliance partnered with law enforcement and collected 353 pounds.

Youth With Vision – Take Back Day

Youth with Vision used the opportunity to showcase their Photovoice Projects. They went to one of our area Police Departments in Shoal Creek and talked with community members as they came in about their project and the importance of securing and disposing of meds appropriately and safely.

Alcohol Awareness Month – April 2019

“Help for Today, Hope for Tomorrow”

One in every 12 adults, or 17.6 million people, suffer from alcohol use disorder or alcohol dependence.

Founded and sponsored by the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (now Facing Addiction with NCADD), Alcohol Awareness Month was established in 1987 to help reduce the stigma so often associated with alcohol addiction by encouraging communities to reach out to the American public each April with information about alcohol, alcohol addiction, and recovery. Alcohol addiction is a chronic, progressive disease, genetically predisposed and fatal if untreated. However, people can and do recover. In fact, it is estimated that as many as 20 million individuals and family members are living lives in recovery from alcohol use!

Alcohol Awareness Month provides a focused opportunity across America to increase awareness and understanding of alcohol addiction, its causes, effective treatment, and recovery. It is an opportunity to decrease stigma and misunderstandings in order to dismantle the barriers to treatment and recovery, and thus make seeking help more readily available to those who suffer from this disease.

With this year’s theme — “Help for Today, Hope for Tomorrow” — the month of April will be filled with local, state, and national events aimed at educating people about the treatment and prevention of alcohol addiction, particularly among our youth, and the important role that parents can play in giving kids a better understanding of the impact that alcohol can have on their lives. Local Facing Addiction with NCADD Affiliates as well as schools, colleges, churches, and countless other community organizations will sponsor a host of activities that create awareness and encourage individuals and families to get help for alcohol-related problems.

An integral part of Alcohol Awareness Month is Alcohol-Free Weekend, April 5-7, 2019, which takes place on the first weekend of April, to raise public awareness about the use of alcohol and how it may be affecting individuals, families, businesses and our communities. During Alcohol-Free Weekend, Facing Addiction with NCADD extends an open invitation to all Americans to engage in three alcohol-free days. Those individuals or families who experience difficulty or discomfort in this 72-hour experiment are urged to contact local Facing Addiction with NCADD Affiliates, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Al-Anon to learn more about alcohol use disorder and its early symptoms.

To help you plan and develop your own 2019 Alcohol Awareness Month events we have prepared an Organizer’s Guide which you can download as a PDF or our new Alcohol Awareness Month Social Media Kit. For more information contact Leah Brock: lbrock@ncadd.org

Please share your events, stories and photos with us on Social Media!

ACT Missouri proudly announces our 2019 Outstanding Youth Prevention Award Recipients!

At the Speak Hard Youth Conference, ACT Missouri and the Division of Behavioral Health honored some of our state’s most active and vocal prevention leaders. Each of them received a plaque and a Senate or House Courtesy Resolution at the ceremony in the Capitol’s Rotunda.

Joeley Clark

Morgan County C.L.E.A.R. (Community Leaders Educating About Resistance), Morgan County R-1

Joeley has been a member of Morgan County Tobacco Free Youth for 3 years. With the group, she has helped with various activities such as
Halloween in the Park, getting surveys completed, ordinance writing, attending city council meetings and Kick Butts activities. She was part of the Taking Down Tobacco pilot program. Joeley also works with Morgan County C.L.E.A.R. Coalition and has done several presentations throughout the community and her school on the dangers of second hand smoke.

Keiley Clark

Morgan County C.L.E.A.R. (Community Leaders Educating About Resistance), Morgan County R-1

Keiley is an active member of Morgan County Tobacco Free Youth. She was part of the Taking Down Tobacco pilot program. She has also worked with Morgan County C.L.E.A.R. on several community presentations on second hand smoke.

Mikayla Dierker

TryPOD-TREND, Grandview

Mikayla has participated in drug prevention programs since fifth grade with D.A.R.E. and the TREND Club at her school. She attended the Prevention Leadership Conference through the NCADA for 3 years as a participant and then as an intern for 3 years. She also attended the Teen Institute. Her passion for prevention has continued into her high school years becoming a member of the Jefferson County Drug Prevention Coalition’s Teen Advisory Board and a mentor to the TREND leaders at her elementary school. Mikayla is currently president of the TryPOD~TREND Club at her high school.

Brianna Fetz

Lee’s Summit CARES, Lee’s Summit West

Brianna, like the rest of our group, wants to encourage students to have healthy coping skills and find ways to bring more awareness for suicide prevention and reduce the stigma around mental health. We hope Brianna will continue to use her voice and gifts to keep her purpose and passion growing and help any community thrive. She has joined our Youth Mental Health and Wellness Task Force and volunteers her time for interviews, signs up for leadership roles within the group in order to bring successful student led activities to the City of Lee’s Summit.

Anya Jeffries

Youth With Vision, Park Hill South

Anya has served as Co-Chair for Youth With Vision for the past two years. She has been instrumental in identifying areas of need in our communities and developing campaigns and programs to address those areas. Over the years, she has attended Prevention Day at the Capitol, local prevention conferences, Northland Youth Leadership Summit, Juvenile Baseline, city council meetings for Clear Air and Tobacco 21, Bunco Mania and Mud Mania. Most recently, Anya developed a public service announcement to address the dangers of youth driving under the influence of marijuana.

Emma Latz

Youth With Vision, Kearney High Schoo

Over the past five years, Emma has been involved in all aspects of Youth With Vision (YWV). She has attended several Prevention Days, taking a lead role in the presentations to the legislators. She has also been a stable influence and played a major role in ensuring YWV is consistent in their actions to meet their mission and goals. She has attended several Northland Youth Leadership Summits, Northland Prevention Conferences, Juvenile Baselines, Mud Mania and Bunco. Emma’s dedication to Youth With Vision is matched by few others.

Jordyn Mays

Council for Drug Free Youth, Calvary Lutheran High School

Jordyn is an active member of Calvary’s Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) group. As such, she is involved in a number of activities, including the Safe and Sober program and the It Only Takes One campaign. She assisted with our Red Ribbon Week and our Suicide Prevention Week. Jordyn is a Missouri Youth and Adult Alliance Student Ambassador. She has participated in testifying at Prevention Day. Jordyn served as game night coordinator for our school’s SADD chapter. She coordinated the game night which was a joint effort between Calvary Lutheran High School and Helias Catholic High School. The purpose of the event is to provide an opportunity for an evening of safe fellowship for students from both schools.

Morgan Neal

Youth With Vision, Liberty North High School

Morgan currently serves as Co-Chair for Youth With Vision. She takes every opportunity to continue to learn, demonstrated by her attendance at ACT Missouri’s Prevention Conference the past two years and her attendance at the Northland Prevention Conference each year. Morgan developed Liberty North’s Trading Card program that identifies positive high school role-models and connects them with elementary and middle school students. The goal is to develop positive relationships and teach healthy behaviors and choices to the young students. Morgan was also instrumental in planning and implementing a week-long campaign named “How Full Is Your Cup”, aimed at reinforcing positive and healthy coping strategies and how to seek help when needed. Morgan developed a five-minute video on stress and coping that was played for the entire Liberty North High School student body and has been placed on Tri-County’s Encourage Hope and Health website for viewing. More importantly, her video is being made a permanent part of the “How Full Is Your Cup” campaign that will be given to over eighteen (18) school districts, representing over 50,000 students.

Brian Purkaple

Youth With Vision, Winnetonka High School

Brian is currently the Advocacy Chair for Youth With Vision (YWV) and is instrumental in identifying the priorities and needs for our coalition. He played an integral part in identifying the talking points for members as they met with legislators about the priorities of YWV. He has also become an essential part of his home school coalition, becoming the first student to ever attend meetings. Brian has also attended Prevention Day, NYLS, the Northland Prevention Conference, Mud Mania, Bunco Mania, and Juvenile Baseline.

Gage Shook

Youth With Vision, Lawson High School

As a member of Youth With Vision, Gage has attended Prevention Day, the Northland Youth Leadership Summit, Mud Mania, and Bunco. He has also presented at a Prevention Conference in Johnson County, KS, and is currently a co-chair for Cardinals in Action, his school coalition. Just recently, Gage coordinated a student presentation to Lawson’s City Council about the need to pass a Tobacco 21 Ordinance. Following that presentation, the council has indicated that it will approve the ordinance at their March meeting.

Emma Wiese

Lee’s Summit CARES, Lee’s Summit West

Emma regularly attends our Youth Advisory Board (YAB) meetings and recently joined our Youth Mental Health and Wellness Task Force. She brings an honest student perspective and helps us create programming and events based on that. Emma is a source of comfort for many of her friends and has gone out of her way to connect some friends with the resources they need. Emma joined a few other YAB members in a panel discussion with our community to discuss why students are stressed and healthy ways to help decrease stress.

Unless otherwise noted all photos taken by Chuck Daugherty, Director, ACT Missouri

Congratulations 2018 Prevention Award Winners

ACT Missouri, the Missouri Substance Use Prevention Network, and the Division of Behavioral health honored some champions of prevention during lunch at the Prevention Conference on November 28^th. Congratulations to these coalitions and individuals who made remarkable advances in their communities this year! They received a plaque and a signed Senate Resolution for their accomplishments.

Coalition of the Year

Communities Taking Action (CTA) has been working since 1995 to promote awareness of alcohol and substance use, offer resources to assist community members in combating the use of drugs by youth, and provide children a drug-free community in which to grow and reach their full potential. They are an integral part of their community, advocating for the reduction of youth substance use and assuring a healthy and vibrant future for the youth of Shelby County.

In 2006, CTA opened the Shelby County Teen Center which has helped to reduce dropout rates by 10%. The coalition implements evidence-based programs such as the Building Strong Families curriculum. They host many youth alternative activities such as basketball tournaments, 5th quarter events after football games, asset building activities, community education events, family fun nights, summer reading programs, business expos, and town hall meetings. They are an integral part of their community, advocating for the reduction of youth substance use and assuring a healthy and vibrant future for the youth of Shelby County.

Champion of Change for Prevention Award

When not serving as a professor in the UMKC School of Pharmacy at MSU, Dr. Heather Lyons-Burney can be found volunteering her time for many causes across multiple counties in Southwest Missouri. In business, in education, and in life; Dr. Lyons-Burney continues to be a champion for the communities and causes that she serves.”

In Taney County, she helped establish the non-profit Faith Community Health Clinic, where she continues to volunteer as a pharmacist and board member. She worked with Taney County Commissioners to establish a county-wide PDMP ordinance and serves as Co-Chair of ADAPT, a current DFC grantee and past CADCA Got Outcomes Coalitions of Excellence award winner.

In Greene County, she brought together area pharmacists, hospitals, and UMKC students to form the DREAM (Drug Responsibility Education and Advocacy Movement) coalition.

Champion of Change for Prevention Award

Don and Millie Lepley, Tri-C Coalition, Conception City

Due to an unexpected blizzard in northwest Missouri, the Lepleys were unable to attend the conference. A local school provided a live telecast of their surprising award presentation. You will be hard-pressed to find individuals in their upper 80’s (Millie is 89 now!) who are as immersed in prevention efforts as they are. They have been a part of the coalition for 17 years and have invested personally and financially in the coalition and the community.

Don and Millie help with various community and coalition events. They volunteer to assist with Easter egg hunts, back to school bashes, Santa work shop, Halloween Fest, hayrides and the supervision of monthly Teen Beat, a substance-free teen hang out. They both participate in the roadside cleanup efforts consisting of the 2 miles of highway adopted by the Teen Beat. Don and Millie also work at the Community-Wide Cleanup Day sponsored by the coalition. They have given rides, helped chaperone, cooked hotdogs and provided other help as needed. They have donated an abundance of personal money to prevention efforts and towards maintenance of the Teen Beat and have dedicated their lives to improving the environmental factors of at-risk youth.

Prevention Emeritus Award

Compass Health Network would like to congratulate Diane Ooton on her extraordinary prevention career to Central Missouri. The prevention field has been very fortunate to have such a dedicated, hard-working, knowledgeable coordinator. Diane was also a mentor and a teacher for the next generation of prevention specialists. Her compassion for what she did proved positively through the many lives she has touched. We are forever grateful for her service.

2018 Milestone in Prevention Award

For over 10 years, Jefferson County Drug Prevention Coalition has worked to help reduce youth substance use, and in the past year, JCDPC staff, executive board members, and volunteers have dedicated their time and effort into ensuring the sustainability of the coalition beyond the final year of their DFC grant. JCDPC was a leader in community organizing for passing the county wide PDMP. They coordinate the Jefferson County Drug Education Conference for professionals seeking training about local issues related to substance use.

Their Teen Advisory Board (TAB) is a group of youth leaders from different high schools who have committed to work on prevention measures that matter to them. TAB provides a comprehensive media campaign around Prom and Homecoming, its students are certified in conducting a Peer OTC Medication Safety Program, and in Nov, TAB will host their first Youth Drug Education Conference. Their commitment to prevention has held them together through challenges and the results speak for themselves.

2018 Milestone in Prevention Award

Caldwell County Cares Coalition, (CCC) is a well-established and respected grass-roots coalition that is valued by the community for the work and contributions they provide. Since 2013, CCC has provided educational programs and prevention events that target local youth and parents. They have worked relentlessly to identify gaps in their area; bringing the community together to seek resources to fill those gaps. They recently passed a Tobacco 21 ordinance and provided prevention messaging to the high intensity drug area of Hideaway Lakes.

CCC hosts an annual “Gifting the Grads” program to provide resources to seniors to help them achieve independence and avoid the negative impact substance use has on their future endeavors. They have made a great impact and rallied various stakeholders from multiple sectors to affect positive change.

ACT Missouri extends our full gratitude for the efforts and accomplishments of these true prevention champions.

What’s the Common Denominator?

The meme, “October is my favorite color”, perfectly states how many perceive this fantastic month and kickoff to fall. It also marks the observance of many important topics in the world of behavioral health: National Substance Use Prevention Month, Red Ribbon Week, National Teen Driver Safety Week, SADD’s Rock the Belt Campaign, National Bullying Prevention Month, National Depression Screening Day, and the National DEA Drug Take Back Day on October 27.

Why would all these observances fall together? Is there a common denominator?

Everyone remembers the busy work assignments we had in grade school where you matched the word with the synonym or definition. Can you match these social/behavioral issues with the correct implication?

As you can tell, there is no answer key to this worksheet! It doesn’t really matter which came first, they are debilitating, life-altering, and sometimes the permanently damaging ancillary effects of substance use.

However, the real common denominator for all these societal afflictions is prevention; increasing protective factors while decreasing risk factors. Is your community taking a multi-thronged approach to improving its behavioral health and reducing substance use? Join us for the Prevention Conference to find out how!

2018 Substance Use Prevention Conference

The Good News is that Prevention Works!

90% of Substance Use Disorders begin in the teen years.

2018 Substance Use Prevention Conference

Calling all Prevention Specialists, Registered Coalition Staff and Volunteers, Educators, Counselors, School Resource Officers, Law Enforcement Officers, Parents, SADD Sponsors, Faith-Based, Peer Support Specialists, Behavioral Health professionals, and anyone else who serves children and youth!

Check Out These Stats!

Enjoyment Factor!

88.5% or respondents scored their experience at the conference as “Very Satisfied” or “Satisfied”

So Worth It!

95.5% are “Very Likely” or “Likely” to attend the conference again.

Contact Hours!

We awarded over 882 contact hours to attendees for Prevention Workforce Development!

Who Attends?

Who is the Audience for
the Prevention Conference?

Last year, 36% of our attendees were coalition members! The rest included: Prevention Specialists, Counselors, Educators, Faith based, Law Enforcement Officers, Public Health Educators, Peer Support Specialists, SADD Members, and Behavioral Health professionals; to name a few.

And The Winner Is. . .

Don’t miss out on an opportunity to honor some amazing people and achievements from our field!

Who will be this year’s:

Coalition of the Year?

Milestone Achievement Coalition?

Champion of Change for Prevention?

Attend our Award Ceremony during lunch on Wednesday to celebrate some of Missouri’s prevention achievements

Ask Our Prevention Conference Alumni

Get ready to be agents of change in your community! Help keep our youth alcohol and drug free by attending our Conference! Join us for three days of networking with others and learning from experts about substance use prevention, resiliency, coalition building techniques, social media and marketing, grass roots mobilizing and advocacy, the latest information and resources on behavioral Health, and much more!

Don’t take our word for it; read what some of last year’s conference attendees said!

Met lots of wonderful people and learned about new programs and ideas to build coalition.

I truly felt that this year every session I attended was valuable to my work, and even my personal life.

I was amazed at the level of knowledge speakers have about substance use prevention and how it applies across the continuum of working with youth and families in the school setting.

The education opportunities were beyond my expectations. I only wish I could have attended more breakout sessions. I am so sorry I did miss some.
Not enough time to do it all.

Only $70

Registration for our conference is only $70.00!

Attendees can earn up to 16 Contact Hours; CHES hours pending! Our new online Contact Hour Application makes it easy to clock your hours and print your certificate at your convenience.

2018 Legislative Recap

During the 2018 Legislative Session, ACT Missouri tracked 67 substance use/behavioral health bills. Out of the thousands that were filed, only 148 made it to the finish line, were “Truly Agreed to and Finally Passed”, and will now be sent to the Governor to sign into law.

SB 718

SB 718 modifies provisions relating to maintenance medication filled by a pharmacist. It contains many other facets including the medical use of hemp extract, drug take back programs, discontinuation of using patient satisfaction scores regarding pain, increasing insurance coverage of Medication Assisted Recovery, and designating 2018-2028 as the Show-Me Freedom from Opioid Addiction Decade. SB 826 modifies provisions relating to pharmacy, including drug disposal, prescription limitations for controlled substances, and vaccine protocols.

If you are interested in the Department of Mental Health’s appropriation information, click below.

ACT Missouri would like to thank you for your advocacy efforts, both at home and at the dome. Please remember that the best time to build rapport with your legislators is when they are in their local districts. Meet with them, explain the importance of prevention and behavioral health policies, and demonstrate how your community is reducing youth substance use!

What, Exactly, is Prevention?

For eight years, I have joined the many professional and volunteer Preventionists in trying to explain what we do to the general public. Some common, brow-raised reactions include: “Drug prevention? You mean like DARE?”, “Prevention is a thing?”, “Oh I know, Red Ribbon Week!” or my favorite of all time, “You’re against alcohol?”

In 1735, Benjamin Franklin’s famous quote about fire precaution became “a thing” when he said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. Many great American accomplishments and life-saving techniques were created with his creed in mind: forest and house fires, crimes, cancer, diabetes, safety, child abuse, and tooth decay to name a few. Finally, about 255 years later, as our communities were grappling with the devastation of Substance Use Disorders, falling short on resources for treatment, and discovering that this particular disease targets teens; substance use prevention was born.

To sum it up in one sentence, prevention efforts seek to increase protective factors and resiliency among youth by decreasing risk factors associated with initiating substance use. This is what we do! Missouri’s Prevention infrastructure is extremely successful because it allocates the resources, capacity building, and decision-making power to individual communities to address their unique needs.

On Monday, May 14, communities will kick off their celebrations of SAMHSA’s National Prevention Week; an annual health observance dedicated to increasing public awareness of, and action around, the importance of SU prevention and positive mental health.

Please join us and use this week to hone your prevention skills, learn the latest information, and help our communities thrive with “Action Today. Healthier Tomorrow”.

Champions of Change for Prevention

Linda Shores

Communities Taking Action

Julia Mees

Excelsior Springs SAFE

Coalition of the Year

Caldwell County Cares

The Coalition of the Year was Caldwell County Cares for their efforts in reducing youth alcohol, e-cigarette and marijuana use below the state average.

Milestone in Prevention

Newton County Community Coalition

This year’s Milestone in Prevention Award went to the Newton County Community Coalition for its underage drinking prevention efforts and advocacy.

Coalition Take Back Days

Healthy Dent County Prevention Coalitionhosted aTake Back Day

Lee’s Summit Cares – Take Back Day

Southeast Missouri Behavioral Health – Take Back Day

Poplar Bluff Police Department – Take Back Day

Southeast Prevention Resource Center- Take Back Day

St. Joseph Youth Alliance- Take Back Day

Youth With Vision – Take Back Day

“Help for Today, Hope for Tomorrow”

Please share your events, stories and photos with us on Social Media!

Joeley Clark

Morgan County C.L.E.A.R. (Community Leaders Educating About Resistance), Morgan County R-1

Keiley Clark

Morgan County C.L.E.A.R. (Community Leaders Educating About Resistance), Morgan County R-1

Mikayla Dierker

TryPOD-TREND, Grandview

Brianna Fetz

Lee’s Summit CARES, Lee’s Summit West

Anya Jeffries

Youth With Vision, Park Hill South

Emma Latz

Youth With Vision, Kearney High Schoo

Jordyn Mays

Council for Drug Free Youth, Calvary Lutheran High School

Morgan Neal

Youth With Vision, Liberty North High School

Brian Purkaple

Youth With Vision, Winnetonka High School

Gage Shook

Youth With Vision, Lawson High School

Emma Wiese

Lee’s Summit CARES, Lee’s Summit West

Coalition of the Year

Champion of Change for Prevention Award

Champion of Change for Prevention Award

Prevention Emeritus Award

2018 Milestone in Prevention Award

2018 Milestone in Prevention Award

What’s the Common Denominator?

90% of Substance Use Disorders begin in the teen years.

Check Out These Stats!

Enjoyment Factor!

So Worth It!

Contact Hours!

Who Attends?

And The Winner Is. . .

Ask Our Prevention Conference Alumni

Only $70

Contact Us

Prevention Resource Center Locator

Partners

Important Info

Healthy Dent County Prevention Coalition
hosted a
Take Back Day